


"I mean, you catch balls for fun."

by SandyRoses



Series: Prank Wars Are Totally Acceptable [1]
Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, April Fools' Day, Aside from CheolSoo all ships are very minor, CheolSoo is main, Crack, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Football Team vs Swim Team, Hansol is a Good Friend, Humor, Innuendo, Joshua is a tease, M/M, Pranks and Practical Jokes, Rated T for swearing, Rivalry, Sexual Tension, Sort Of, Swimming Pools, but a cute rivalry, playful boyfriends
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-22
Updated: 2019-09-22
Packaged: 2020-10-25 19:04:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,081
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20729231
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SandyRoses/pseuds/SandyRoses
Summary: The rivalry between Pledis High's swim team and football team has been going on for a long, long time. Long enough, it seems that fate decides.ORSeungcheol knows he shouldn't be catching feelings for Joshua, captain of the swim team, but he is, and he is catching them   hard. So hard. He just can't help it.





	"I mean, you catch balls for fun."

**Author's Note:**

> IT'S MY BIRTHDAY TODAY SO I THOUGHT I'D DO SOMETHING NICE FOR EVERYONE AND POST ONE OF MY FAVORITE WORKS SO FAR!! I LOVE CHEOLSOO!! I HOPE YOU ENJOY THIS!!

The rivalry between Pledis High’s swim team and football team was an age-old thing, said to have been started when the school was first built. No one even knew why they disliked each other so much, but it had been passed down from generation to generation, and those who joined either team took an unspoken oath to absolutely despise the other team’s guts. It was practically part of the contract.

However, after so many years, the rivalry dissolved into something more playful, less violent. They had gone from hissing caustic insults at each other every time they passed in the hallways to tying shoelaces together if they fell asleep in class, trying not to giggle. 

And none were better at that weird game of cat and mouse than Seungcheol and Joshua, captains of the football and swim team respectively. Whenever they were in a room together, the air instantly felt charged, and you could always find them glancing at each other, wondering how to trip the other up in the funniest way possible. 

The most recent prank of their had been Joshua’s, and it ended with Seungcheol’s hair covered in glitter when he took a shower in the locker rooms after practice. Joshua, who had been waiting outside for his reaction, burst into laughter upon hearing his shriek of “JOSHUA FUCKING HONG!” from inside, and sprinted away when a shirtless and still damp-haired Seungcheol burst out of the locker rooms to chase him across the field, growling profanities but grinning like an idiot.

Seungcheol’s hair had stayed glittery until the week afterwards, and currently, Seungcheol was trying very hard to think of a suitable prank to get Joshua back. 

“C’mon, Jeonghan, help me here!” he wheedled, poking at the long-haired boy’s shoulder. “I need to find something good. Something so good he’ll give up.” At that, Jeonghan gave him a somewhat judgemental look, flicking his honey-blond hair over his shoulder.

“Seungcheol, why do you assume that I’m going to help you with your weird...rivalry or whatever?”

“Because you’re Joshua’s best friend, and arguably mine too, so I need dirt on him. C’mon, what ticks him off?” Seungcheol pushed, leaning closer. Jeonghan rolled his eyes with a sigh of long-suffering, shaking his head.

“I dunno dude, put bath bombs in the pool?” he shrugged, and Seungcheol’s eyes lit up. 

Then he deflated. “...That’s gonna be hella expensive though, to get so many bath bombs…” Jeonghan shrugged dismissively, too busy idly going through his homework. Seungcheol huffed. “You’re kinda useless when it comes to this.”

“I’m not on either team, Seungcheol, so I couldn’t really care less. All I care about is that you two don’t hurt each other in...whatever game you’re playing.” He paused. “...And Shua habitually enjoys going to the library on Wednesday afternoons.” Seungcheol smirked.

“You’re the best Jeonghan thanks gotta go bye!” he trilled, picking up his bag and dashing off. Now, what kind of pranks could he do in the library that wouldn’t end in him getting in trouble…?

* * *

On Wednesday afternoon, after completing his little prank, Seungcheol hid behind some of the shelves in the library, biting his lip to hide a giggle as Joshua walked in. His eyes immediately widened and he blinked several times, and Seungcheol, who was still hiding, had resorted to biting his fingers to stop his laughter. It had taken three long after-school sessions but he’d successfully turned every book on the shelves around so their spines wouldn’t show. The librarian had only given him an extremely tired look, but let him get away with it. 

Delight filled Seungcheol’s chest as he watched Joshua’s lips turn upwards into a reluctant smile, eyes narrowed but in appreciation. They both did love a good prank, harmless but funny, amusing with intention. Competitive obnoxiousness, almost.

“This is so petty,” he heard Joshua mutter to himself, shaking his head as he went to peruse the shelves. Deciding it would be safe to show himself, Seungcheol tapped his shoulder, snickering at how Joshua jumped.

“Good luck finding something to read,” he snorted. Joshua rolled his eyes, looking incredibly unimpressed.

“You must have wasted so much time doing this. I can just pick any book and read it, so who’s really the one being pranked?” Joshua shot back. Seungcheol blinked. He hadn’t thought about that. As if to prove his point, Joshua pulled a random book from the shelf, looked at it, and then gave Seungcheol a wink and a smile, walking off and plopping into one of the soft library chairs to read.

“...Dammit,” Seungcheol muttered to himself. How did Joshua always get the best of him? He’d have to think of something better next time.

Still. It was nice to know Joshua liked to read.

* * *

“You’ve been staring at him for like, a solid 10 minutes, dude.” Mingyu’s voice broke Seungcheol out of his thoughts, and he realized that yes indeed, he had actually been absently gazing in Joshua’s direction during lunch for a while now. To be fair, he was trying to think of how to start his history essay and just happened to be looking in that direction, but now that his attention had been drawn to the swim captain, he couldn’t help but look a little closer.

He threw his head back when he laughed, but he covered his mouth. Cute. 

“Sorry, just thinking about my history essay. I don’t know anything about 15th century France,” Seungcheol sighed, putting his forehead on the table. “Am I supposed to?” There was something about a Hundred Years’ War and decentralized powers and Charles VII… Or was it some guy named Robespierre? Or was that in the 18th century? He didn’t know anymore; all the dates in his head were mixed up from staring at a textbook for too long.

Oh well, he could just snitch Joshua’s notebook later. The kid stupidly good grades for a fish.

“Yes. We literally had a period-long lecture yesterday,” Wonwoo huffed, flicking his ear. “What, too busy staring at Fish Boy to pay attention? I know he’s in your history class.”

At that, Seungcheol looked away. He had actually been staring at Joshua during class, taking in his features while trying to think of a way to make him flustered. Over the course of an hour or so, he’d followed how Joshua’s earrings glinted in the light when he tilted his head and watched the little tuft of hair that always stuck straight out on the back of his head. He kind of wanted to pet it down to see it spring up again. 

“He was probably thinking of a way to prank him. As usual,” Hansol hummed, tossing a ball back and forth with someone across the room that Seungcheol couldn’t see very well. 

“Just ask him out already. The sexual tension between you two is getting unbearable,” Jihoon snorted. Seungcheol shot up at that, red-faced, protesting wildly because _ no, he would not like to date that skinny twig of a swim captain thank you very much- _

Jihoon only smirked at him and Seungcheol huffed, setting his head back down on the table and glaring across the room at Joshua, who was smirking right at him as though reading his mind. Seungcheol looked away quickly, and Jihoon snorted again. Seungcheol glared at him.

No. He would most definitely _ not _ like to date Joshua Hong. That was absurd.

* * *

His next great idea came when Joshua showed up to school with his hair bleached bright blond, almost white. He was practically begging to have hair dye put in his shampoo bottle. What color would look good…?

Seungcheol settled for pink. Surely that would be enough to make Joshua annoyed, right?

“I know what you’re thinking,” Jeonghan chuckled when he saw Seungcheol staring at Joshua. “That’s the oldest trick in the book.”

“Can you blame me?” Seungcheol smirked at Jeonghan, throwing him a grin. “He put glitter in my hair, I turn his hair pink. Fair trade,” he reasoned. Jeonghan rolled his eyes, shaking his head, but there was a glint in his eyes that made Seungcheol smirk wider.

Now he just had to put his plan into action. It wouldn’t be hard to get into the pool’s changing rooms, he could just claim he was waiting for Chan or Minghao or something, but he just needed access to Joshua’s shampoo bottle; that would be the hard part. Did Joshua keep all his stuff in a locker or did he just leave it out? Seungcheol had learned his lesson the hard way with the glitter. 

The perfect opportunity came when Jun walked up to him after school, holding a soft-looking red sweater in his arms and asking if he would accompany the younger to the pool to give Minghao his sweater back. 

“Sure,” Seungcheol hummed, trying to hide his glee. It would be the perfect cover up story. Everything was going perfectly.

“Yay!” Jun cheered, grabbing his arm and tugging him towards the school’s pool. Now, Seungcheol hadn’t actually been in there a lot, he didn’t like the smell of chlorine, but he supposed there was a nice kind of tranquility in the way the water made wavering patterns of light on the walls and ceiling. But, weirdly enough, he didn’t see anyone in the pool room.

“...Where are they?” he huffed at Jun, who was waiting patiently.

“Underwater, probably holding their breath,” Jun hummed, rocking back and forth on the balls of his feet. Seungcheol blinked, reluctantly impressed. 

But he had a job to do. “How long do you think they’re gonna be?” he asked, and Jun shrugged, idly petting the sweater in his arms. “Well come find me if it’s more than half an hour. I’m gonna go to the bathroom real quick.” Jun just nodded, and, trying not to smile, Seungcheol walked back into the locker rooms, looking around for a distinctive blue bag with a red ribbon around one of the handles. He didn’t know why Joshua always had that ribbon, but it helped.

He smirked when he saw it lying on one of the benches, completely unattended. Giggling to himself, he walked over, paused to wonder if what he was doing was illegal, then shrugged and unzipped it. He saw the usual change of clothes, some books in Japanese he couldn’t read, a hair brush, ect., ect. In the side pockets, he found a cute little photograph of Joshua and who Seungcheol assumed were his parents, along with some spare change in pennies and lo and behold, a bottle of shampoo and conditioner. 

Unscrewing the bottle of shampoo, he took the small packet of pink dye he had in his pocket and poured it in, shaking vigorously before setting it back in the pocket and making sure everything looked untouched.

For a second, he just stared at the red ribbon. It was just...there, contrasting the navy blue weirdly like it wasn’t supposed to be there but Joshua had tied it on anyway. He had a brief thought of taking it, then decided firmly against it. That would be setting a toe across the unspoken like they had drawn. 

Smirking faintly, he went back to Jun, who was still standing by the glass, watching the swim team, who had come back up and were apparently discussing something important, if the way Chan was waving his hands around said anything.

Now, strictly speaking, Seungheol didn’t have a problem with any of the swim team. In fact he was friends with many of them. His weird playful rivalry extended only to Joshua, who reciprocated with equal eagerness, and Seungcheol enjoyed playing their little game. Even Jun’s quiet, soft-spoken boyfriend Minghao was nice to talk to, and once you got over his shy side he had no qualms about making fun of his friends. Lovingly of course. 

“They should be done soon,” Jun noted, looking down at his watch. “And yep, there they go-” He eagerly hurried through the door as the swim team started getting out of the pool, though a few of them, Joshua and Minghao included, stayed behind, talking about something. Seungcheol gave Chan a high five as he passed and received a grin in return.

“Hao~!” Jun trilled, making Seungcheol roll his eyes, though fondly. Jun was so whipped sometimes that it hurt.

Seungcheol’s eyes went past Minghao, to Joshua, who was staring right back at him, now-blond hair damp and sticking to his head. There was a challenging glint in his eyes as always, a little smirk lingering on the corner of his lips. Seungcheol smirked back, an invitation to spar with words.

“Bold of you to come here, captain,” Joshua called, resting his arms on the edge of the pool like some kind of mermaid. Seungcheol never got why Joshua chose that nickname, since technically he was a captain as well, but it always made a weird sense of flustered pride rise up in him.

“Bold of you to assume I had a choice,” he snorted, giving Jun a look. His smirk softened when Joshua laughed, covering his mouth with one hand as always. Why did he feel...endeared?

“I don’t think you’re here for a swim, are you, captain?” Joshua continued, tilting his head in that insufferable way that always made Seungcheol eager to like, race him or something. 

“I don’t have gills like you do, fish boy,” he snorted. “All you do is splash in the water all day.”

“I mean, you catch balls for fun,” Joshua quipped back calmly, and that garnered some laughs from everyone still in the room. Seungcheol struggled for a moment to think of a proper, sufficiently cutting response. He couldn’t. Curse Joshua for always having a silver tongue.

“I don’t think inhaling chlorine to get high is that fun,” he finally shot back. Joshua smirked.

“Ramming into other people and getting knocked unconscious doesn’t sound that fun either,” he said lightly, putting his head on his arm. “And speaking of you being here, should I be worried you’ve done anything to my stuff? Maybe stolen something?”

“Do you really think that badly of me? I’m hurt, Hong,” he pretended to sigh, putting a hand over his heart. “As if I would...ever...do that…” He trailed off pathetically when Joshua hoisted himself out of the water and good mother of god Joshua fucking Hong had abs. Like, legit abs. Abs Seungcheol suddenly wanted to sink his teeth into and run his fingertips over to see how Joshua would gasp and twitch at his touch-

Now that was a weird train of thought!

“You were saying, captain?” Joshua purred, walking towards him, still dripping wet and displaying those glorious abs. Seungcheol could bounce a quarter off of those abs. 

And now Seungcheol had completely lost his train of thought. He couldn’t rip his eyes from Joshua’s torso, and even though he probably looked incredibly stupid and very obvious, his brain was short circuiting and if someone nudged his shoulder he would probably fall over.

“Eyes up here, casanova,” Joshua snorted, tilting his face up with one slender finger like a movie villain. He looked so incredibly smug that Seungcheol couldn’t even formulate a response. 

“Might wanna go dunk yourself in the pool, captain,” Joshua chuckled before walking off, leaving Seungcheol disproportionately stunned and gaping, staring after Joshua as he waved and slipped through the door. What the fuck had just happened??

“...Jihoon was right,” Jun huffed, breaking him out of his thoughts. He sounded so unimpressed that it was almost funny, but Seungcheol was still conflicted and going through a crisis because Joshua had abs and he didn’t know how to feel about that. Kind of impressed, kind of surprised, a little bit curious, maybe just a hint of turned on.

No. Not that last one. Definitely not. 

“Joshua is single,” Minghao piped up helpfully. Seungcheol glared at him while Jun laughed wildly next to him. What was he supposed to do with that info? Act on it?

...He hated how a part of him was highly tempted.

* * *

When he saw Joshua next, he was quite confidently sporting his bright pink hair and looking not at all upset. Seungcheol blinked at him across the commons, confused, and when Joshua caught his eye, he had the audacity to wave.

“Thanks for the free hair job!” Joshua called, looking incredibly smug, and all eyes went to Seungcheol, who huffed. Why did his plans always backfire when it came to one Joshua Hong?

“Jun told me what happened at the pool yesterday,” Jeonghan chuckled, sliding into the seat next to him.

“Shut up,” Seungcheol replied automatically, looking down at his phone. He didn’t need to be reminded of Joshua or his abs that Seungcheol definitely did not want to see dripping with water again-

“C’mon, your little prank war has to end sometime, right? Just catch him off guard and win by asking him out!”

“Won’t he just think it’s a prank though?” Seungcheol huffed.

“So you’re not denying that you want to go out with him.”

“That’s not what I- dear lord Jeonghan, you know that’s not what I meant,” he groaned, cutting the long-haired boy off. Jeonghan only smirked at him, that specifically insufferable smirk when he knew something Seungcheol didn’t and fully intended to use it against him. Those were the times Seungcheol doubted his friendship with Jeonghan.

“...Why are you smirking like that?”

“I’m not smirking like anything.”

“Yes you are. You’re smirking your stupid smirk.”

“I’m offended, Cheol.”

“You should be.”

“...Well, whatever I’m amused about, you just go figure out how you want to annoy Shua this week,” Jeonghan chuckled, leaving Seungcheol confused, slightly irritated, and more unsure than ever about a very specific member of the swim team.

* * *

Football practice is supposed to be his escape for a while, especially right afterwards when most people leave and he can just toss a ball back and forth with Hansol and Mingyu and chat about stupid things like grades and the cute boy in the library Mingyu’s been trying to talk to for weeks. 

“Just go up and say hi, man,” Hansol encouraged, adding a bit of spin to his throw so Mingyu had to catch it awkwardly. “Not that hard. I’ll do it for you.”

“How are you so calm about literally everything?” Mingyu whined, tossing the ball to Seungcheol, who was grateful for the distraction from his own thoughts. Mingyu’s latest crush was a foxy, quiet boy who was always in the library and who had given Seungcheol a strange look when he turned all the books around.

“It took me four months to even smile at Seungkwan. Once I said hello and y’know, became his friend and then his boyfriend, I wondered why I wasted so much time panicking,” Hansol snorted.

“You’re weird. Act your age,” Seungcheol huffed. Hansol always seemed so...so old. Ancient, like his soul had seen the beginning of the universe. 

“I am.” Case in point, Seungcheol shivered from the small, knowing smile Hansol gave him.

“You’re weird,” he said again, throwing the ball to Hansol.

“I’m just sayin’ maybe things will go well if you just get the guts to talk to him,” Hansol shrugged, tossing the football up and down for a second before throwing it to Mingyu.

“But...he’s so pretty,” Mingyu mumbled.

“Why is that stopping you?” Seungcheol snorted. Mingyu glared at him.

“You can’t say anything! You saw how Joshua had abs and you fucking shut down like a computer with a hard drive problem,” he accused. Seungcheol missed a step and the ball hit him square in the chest, forcing a pained “oof” from his mouth.

“Whipped~” Hansol sing-songed. 

“I am not-”

“Yes, yes you are,” Mingyu snorted, holding his hand up for the ball. Seungcheol threw it as hard as he could and was satisfied with Mingyu’s hiss of discomfort when the football slapped into his hands. 

“Your prank war has been going on since you two joined your teams. Just like, bury the hatchet and start dating,” Hansol called, crouching to get a low throw from Mingyu. “I mean, Josh is a good person, and you’re a good person, and your personalities match well.”

“So? Just because we happen to have matching personalities doesn’t mean we should date,” Seungcheol argued, grabbing the ball from the air with a bit more frustration than strictly necessary. “Like, Mingyu, you and Jun get along just fine.”

“Jun has a boyfriend and if I ever try, Minghao will skin me,” Mingyu laughed, watching Hansol fumble the ball as Seungcheol threw it a touch too far to the left. “You’re sad and single and Joshua is also single.”

“So??” Seungcheol huffed again. 

“We all know you don’t actually dislike each other,” Hansol said mildly, pausing to look at him. “Like if Joshua got sick you would be sad and wait for him to get better so you could prank him again, right? You were ogling him in the pool and I know for a fact that you like his pink hair no matter how much you try to deny it. And I dunno about you, but I can go and ask if he thinks the same about you.”

That made Seungcheol swallow uneasily. A part of him was incredibly unsettled, because technically what Hansol was saying was correct. If Joshua got sick, he probably would be worried and lonely, and he _ did _ like Joshua’s pink hair, more than he was willing to admit. 

“Just start leaving love letters in his locker and his bag and shit,” Mingyu laughed, walking over and slapping his back. Seungcheol glared at him, inching away.

“Now, hypothetically, if I did that, which I don’t want to, ever, he would just think it’s a joke,” he pointed out.

“Not if you just tell him you like him. Do you like him?” Hansol asked simply.

“No,” Seungcheol said automatically.

“Then why do you keep playing your little prank war? Surely if you didn’t like him you would have stopped or went too far a long time ago. I think you just want to get his attention,” Hansol pointed out.

“...You’ve been watching too much Sherlock.” Hansol deadpanned at that, tossing him the ball. 

“Well, if you ever want to join me and Seungkwan in domestic bliss, then go wild,” he shrugged, patting Seungcheol's shoulder before walking off with Mingyu, leaving Seungcheol even more conflicted than ever and suddenly tempted to douse himself in the pool to clear his head, chlorine smell be damned.

* * *

As March came to a close, Seungcheol grew simultaneously more worried and more excited. April Fool’s day was right around the corner and so far, he hadn’t thought of a good enough prank to do. Ever since Joshua’s hair had been turned pink, all of Seungcheol’s textbooks had gone missing and had ended up in a tower on the school roof, his teachers had all started calling him Tim (he was sure Joshua had paid them), and his nails had been painted a bright shade of red when he’d fallen asleep during lunch.

How the fuck was he supposed to top that?? Maybe he could take Jeonghan’s bath bomb idea…? He was pretty sure he could convince Chan and Minghao to help him. Sort of.

He was embarrassed to admit that on April Fool’s day, he still didn’t have a plan. He was just sitting in the commons with Jeonghan and Seungkwan and Soekmin, trying to think of something at the last minute. He felt like he was being tested and he was being put through some big exam or something. None of his friends were being helpful. Jihoon had even told him over text that morning to just give up and let Joshua win.

Well he couldn’t just do that, could he? He had pride. And an intense desire to win every game he played. Besides, if he let Joshua have the last word, his friends would never let him live it down. 

What if he covered Joshua’s motorcycle with post-it notes? Nah, that would take way too long. Vinegar in his water bottle? That would just be kinda mean. Funny, yes, but mean. Steal all his shampoo? That was just scraping the bottom of the barrel.

He was so deep in thought that he didn’t notice the commons get quiet around him, tension rising in the air. He didn’t notice the way Jeonghan was smirking or how Seungkwan and Seokmin were punching each other not to laugh. He was so distracted that when a hand tapped his shoulder, he jumped, turning around quickly with his heart beating way too fast, about to tell them off for scaring him-

A soft hand landing on his cheek silenced him effectively, and softer lips meeting his own made his entire body shut down. Wide-eyed, he stared, lips slack, at Joshua’s face in front of him, eyes closed, expression peaceful. What...was happening?

When Joshua finally pulled away, the swimmer smiled.

“Happy April Fool’s,” he whispered, patting Seungcheol’s cheek before simply walking off, leaving Seungcheol to continue to malfunction wildly, all systems just turning off like someone had stunned him with a taser. 

There was some laughter and whistling around the commons, and Seungkwan and Seokmin finally burst into laughter and Seungcheol’s completely and absolutely stunned face, eyes wide as though someone had thrown a spider at him. 

The feeling of Joshua’s lips still made his skin tingle and in a possibly very, very stupid split-second decision, Seungcheol jumped out of his seat and speed-walked over to a retreating Joshua, grabbing his wrist and spinning him around. He was a little surprised to see Joshua’s cheeks colored as pink as his hair, but he ignored it, instead gingerly cupping the back of Joshua’s head with one hand and holding his waist with the other, pulling him into a slower, deeper kiss, eyes slipping shut.

Joshua reacted exactly like he had for a second, still and stunned, but after that hesitation, Seungcheol laughed when he felt arms around his shoulders, holding him tightly as Joshua tilted his head to deepen the kiss, clearly quite pleased.

There was cheering and wolf-whistling coming from all over, but Seungcheol ignored it, focusing only on Joshua’s lips. He had soft lips, a little chapped, and soft hair too, hair Seungcheol wanted to pet and run his fingers through while they watched some old cheesy movie or something on a late Saturday night with a bowl of popcorn between them.

When Seungcheol’s hands roamed just a bit too much for the crowd’s liking, someone yelled an amused “get a room!”

“We have this one!” Joshua yelled back, smirking at someone over Seungcheol’s shoulder. There was some more laughter from around the common room, but Seungcheol relented, leaving only one last, light little peck on Joshua’s lips before taking his hands.

“So I uh...can I take that as an invitation?” he asked awkwardly, smiling sheepishly as he rocked on the balls of his feet. 

“What, an invitation to be my boyfriend?” Joshua snorted, and Seungcheol’s smile fell. What if Joshua had only done it as a prank? What if he’d pushed their game too far and Joshua didn’t want to be friends? What if-

“Stop freaking out. I want you to be my boyfriend and I want to be your boyfriend,” Joshua laughed, petting some hair away from his face. “You’re such a puppy, it’s cute.” Seungcheol perked up instantly, a bright smile gracing his features, and he fought himself on picking Joshua up and twirling him around. 

“So- so can I kiss you again? Just in case?” he asked eagerly, and Joshua snorted, rolling his eyes.

“Yes, you idiot, yes you can.” Seungcheol didn’t need to be told twice.

Once they’d pulled apart, Seungcheol dragged Joshua back to his seat, happily taking one of his hands. Joshua’s hands were a little bigger than his own, and he liked how their fingers fit together.

“Soonyoung, you owe me 15 bucks,” Jeonghan hummed calmly, holding his hand out to a despondent-looking Soonyoung, who frowned before handing over his money.

“You- you bet on us?” Seungcheol huffed. Jeonghan only smirked at him.

“Of course we did. Perfect opportunity,” Jeonghan said lightly, waving a hand dismissively. “Besides, aren’t you happy now? You’ve been unknowingly pining after him for weeks, Cheol, it’s about time-”

“I was not _ unknowingly pining _ after him-”

“You stayed up a whole night trying to think of a way to get him back. Most people I know don’t stay up a whole night thinking about someone unless they love that person,” Hansol laughed, walking up and wrapping his arms around Seungkwan’s shoulders. “I can vouch.”

“Aww, you did that for me, Cheol? I’m touched,” Joshua gasped, putting a hand over his heart in a mock gesture of surprise. Seungcheol hid his face in his hands, forgetting he was still holding one of Joshua’s. He had soft hands.

“All of you can shut up. Especially you, Yoon Jeonghan,” he muttered, and Jeonghan’s staccato laughter just made him cringe further. Why did all of his friends love to embarrass him…?

“...You’re sweet,” he heard Joshua mumble, and he softened as he felt a kiss tentatively pressed to his temple. “By the way, did you ever think of a good prank to get me back? ‘Cause as far as I know, I’m winning,” he added, and Seungcheol huffed, opened his mouth, then shut it.

“...You win this round, Hong,” he sighed, shaking his head. Joshua laughed, throwing his head back, and Seungcheol smiled at him softly. Now that he looked a little closer, Joshua was really pretty… How had he never given it proper thought? He had pretty eyelashes and a pretty voice and pretty hands and he was funny and sweet and cute-

Ok, yeah, maybe he had been whipped for a while. But if it was anyone’s fault, it was Joshua’s, for being so adorable. 

“I’m gonna get you back later though, this doesn’t end here,” he warned, and Joshua flashed him one of his trademark challenging grins, a little smirk that Seungcheol could now kiss if he wanted to.

“I look forward to it, captain,” Joshua drawled, and Seungcheol rolled his eyes, but Joshua leaned close to his ear, forcing him to listen.

“If you impress me, I’ll tell you how I got my abs. Sound good?” he purred, and Seungcheol was instantly interested. 

Yeah, he was definitely gonna go all-out for his next prank.

**Author's Note:**

> This is gonna be part of a two-part series! I'll upload the other one in Joshua's POV sometime soon, and they can be read separately without needing the other for context, but just to be safe, you should probably read this one too. Again, Water Boy Josh is my favorite Josh, so y'all can see why I put him in the swimming pool. 
> 
> (And I promise I'll upload the last part of Fish Boy soon dw)


End file.
